DVDs
02/09/13 By Evan Haga
The Orchestrion Project
In case you slept through 2010, let’s recap: Pat Metheny’s Orchestrion was a one-band-man project for the ages, wherein the guitarist fronted a large ensemble’s worth of instruments played using an elaborate system of robotics. It was the sort of mad scientist’s...
02/06/13 By Jeff Tamarkin
Blue Flame: Portrait of a Jazz Legend
Although he outlasted most of his big band-era contemporaries, working steadily for more than 50 years and never resorting to nostalgia, Woody Herman is rarely considered iconic today. Perhaps that’s because—as some of the clarinetist, saxophonist and singer’s...
02/02/13 By Bill Meredith
Live in Marciac
Japanese pianist Hiromi left fans perplexed when she disbanded her trio with fellow Berklee alumni Tony Grey (bass) and Martin Valihora (drums) after several standout releases. Yet that trio, often augmented by guitarist David Fiuczynski, built its incredible...
11/27/11 By Jeff Tamarkin
DVD Review: 'Jazz Icons 5' Boxed Set
Coltrane, Blakey, Hubbard, Monk, Kirk and Griffin in sizzling historic performances
May 2009 By Jeff Tamarkin
Live in Berlin & Stockholm 1968
By 1968 the big bands were supposedly dead, but someone forgot to tell that to Count Basie, whose orchestra, still going strong, hadn’t altered much of anything since its heyday. Although most of the key members of the classic lineups had either passed on...
May 2009 By Mike Joyce
Murphy’s Mood
Casual fans of bop vocalist Mark Murphy who bring home this DVD without closely examining the list of performances are likely to be left wanting more—a lot more. Featuring two nearly 30-year-old episodes of the TV show Ad Lib, Murphy’s Mood isn’t quite what...
May 2009 By Mike Joyce
Sonny Rollins: Saxophone Colossus
Bob Mugge's critically-acclaimed portrait of Sonny Rollins released on DVD.
May 2009 By Christopher Loudon
’Tis Autumn: The Search for Jackie Paris
Two skinny, Italian-American guys from New Jersey, both equipped with extraordinary pipes. One, from Hoboken, emerges as the most celebrated singer of the 20th century. The other, from Nutley, builds as long a career, performing alongside the likes of Dizzy...
